37th annual Kingston Women’s Art Festival bigger and better than ever

City Park was filled to capacity Sunday for the 37th annual Kingston Women’s Art Festival.

Artists and vendors set up a total of 198 booths showcasing everything from paintings and pottery to clothing and accessories. There was also music as well as food trucks and kids’ activities.

Organizers say the event is only getting better, thanks to a wave of new faces. The festival’s appeal isn’t just the items for sale but the community atmosphere created by vendors old and new.

Painter and event organizer Vanessa Martin says: “People just like anything that brings them together; they like community. A lot of artists are new so they like talking to other artists that have been doing it for a while.”

Isabella Duchemin has been selling her pottery at the festival for 22 years. She says the event gives new entrepreneurs a chance to flourish.

“It’s perfect for younger women and perfect for students starting in small business or just wanting to try something,” she said.

Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "It's perfect for younger women and perfect for students starting in small business or just wanting to try something," she said.

At 14 years old, Jorja Majury sells handmade accessories and is one of the youngest vendors at the event.

“It’s really fun because you get to know everybody and you get to know what they’re doing and why they’re doing it. I feel like when I get older, I will have all these skills that I’ve learned now and I will gain from them,” says Majury.

The event almost came to a halt two years ago, when most of the volunteer committee stepped down at the same time.

Doreen Morey was the only one remaining and says the new team members who stepped up have helped make the event better than ever.

“It’s on Instagram and it’s on social media and so people hear about it and younger people hear about it. That’s really brought some new blood into the show,” said Morey.

Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "It's on Instagram and it's on social media and so people hear about it and younger people hear about it. That's really brought some new blood into the show," said Morey.

Taura Hanson, one of the committee’s newer members, says part of that social media plan was being active with the art community online.

“I decided that we would revamp our Instagram account. What we’ve done over the last year, which exploded the event with traffic, was we put a focus on each individual artist. We put a focus on their artwork and a description of who they are and what they are about and links to their pages,” Hanson explained.

Hanson says Facebook was also a big part of remodelling the way the group advertises its event.

All of the money made from vendor fees goes to a charity that benefits women in the community.